Wire drawing machine



March 13, 1962 A. LARIBEE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledAug. 6, 1959 HHGI March 13, 1962 L. A. LARiBEE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE 3Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 6, 1959 INVENTOR LORENZO A. LARIBEE ATTORNEYMarch 13, 1962 A. LARIBEE 3,024,897

WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed Aug. 6, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 11

FIG. III

INVENTOR LORENZO A. LARIBEE WMQ M ATTORNEY 3,024,897 WIRE DRAWINGMACHENE Lorenzo A. Larihee, Cemetary Road, Camden, N.Y. Filed Aug. 6,1959, Ser. No. 832,09 4 Claims. (Cl. 20513) This invention relates to awire drawing machine and more particularly to a high speed, compactmachine of greatly improved efiiciency.

In the wire drawing industry, in order to obtain practical rates ofproduction of wire drawing, it is very necessary and important tocontrol the temperature of the Wire to prevent undesired variations ofcharacteristics therein due to overheating. For small size wires this isparticularly important and continuous cooling is almost a necessity. Thepractice of immersing the drawing dies and heads completely in a coolingsolution which is continu ously circulated to the drawing station hasthus grown up. Since in a single pass through a machine a number of diesmay be used to produce the desired reduction in size, the stringing upoperation can become quite involved and time consuming to ensure thatthe wire is wrapped around the drawing heads in the proper manner and isinserted through the desired dies and so forth. In the usual machine,this necessitates either the removal of the cooling fluid which, ifdrawing has been going on, is normally quite hot or working directly inthe hot fluid which is extremely uncomfortable for the operator to saythe least.

To overcome this problem, various devices have been proposed in whichthe entire drawing head may be pivoted out of the cooling tank toprovide access to the drawing heads outside of the cooling medium.Generally these machines have been rather large involved machinesrequiring special installations and highly expensive and complicateddriving arrangements requiring very large power equipment to drive thenecessary gear trains and auxiliary driving system to perform thedrawing operation. According to my invention '1 have provided a verysimple, compact machine that requires a minimum of driving power toproduce maximum reduction in gauge of wire all in a very high speedoperation. Briefly I accomplish this by providing a driving motordirectly above the cooling tank and fixing the drawing head directly onthe motor shaft without any intermediate gear trains.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide animproved wire drawing machine of greatly increased eificiency foraccomplishing a maximum reduction in size of wire per minimum amount offloor space. It is another object of the present invention to provide animproved wire drawing machine in which the drawing wire is continuallyimmersed in cooling and lubricating solution and in which the drawingheads may be readily removed from the solution for adjustment orstringing up thereof without draining of the coolant. It is anotherobject of the present invention to provide a wire drawing machine inwhich a large number of reductions may be made in an extremely smallspace. It is a still further object of the present invention to providea Wire drawing machine for large reductions in wire size with a minimumamount of driving power. -It is still further object of the presentinvention to provide a wire drawing machine utilizing a plurality ofdriving motors each relatively small in size and each being utilized atits maximum efficiency for its particular operation. It is a stillfurther object of the present invention to provide a wire drawingmachine for making a large number of reductions in wire size in aminimum of space and for winding the finished wire on a reel ready forfurther operations all in a selfcontained compactly arranged unit. Theseand other and further objects will be in part apparent and in partpointed out as the specification proceeds.

States Patent In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation of the machine according to the presentinvention;

FIGURE 2 is a left side elevation of the machine of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a right hand side elevation of the machine of FIGURE 1 withthe drawing heads withdrawn from the cooling tank;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view, partially broken away, taken on line IV'IVof FIGURE 3 showing the drawing heads and die arrangement;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary elevational view of a portion of the dieholder with dies therein;

FIGUREG is a fragmentary plan view of the die holder; and

FIGURE 7 is a partial elevational view of the reel drive mechanism.

Referring now to the drawings, the machine it) according to the presentinvention comprises generaliy a frame portion 12 having four legs 14carrying on the upper ends thereof a tank 16. A totally enclosed motor18 is pivotally carried on pivot arms 24 mounted on each side of thetank 16. The bottom portion of the frame 12 carries between the legs 14a take-up reel 22 driven by auxiliary motor 26 mounted on an anglebracket 28 on the back of the frame 12. Motor 26 also drives a levelwind mechanism 30 for ensuring level winding of the wire on the take-upreel 22 as it comes out of the drawing apparatus above. Take-up reel 22is quickly and easily mounted in frame 12 by cam and spindle assembly24.

The actual drawing apparatus comprises the motor 13 which is mounted ona pair of plates 32 and 3-4 (see FIGURE 3) which in turn are mounted byarms 36 to the pivot arms 29 mounted on the tank 16. Motor 13 is on theorder of seven and one-half horsepower and has the shaft extendingoutwardly from both ends of the housing. The housing of motor 18 isfixed to the plate 32 so that the shaft 38 extends therethrough andcarries on the end extending below plate 32 driving head 4%) which is aseven step inverted cone type of pulley which will be described in moredetail herein. The casing of motor 18 is also secured to the plate 34 onthe side thereof to make a firm and rigid mounting. Also mounted onplate 34 on the other side thereof is a second or auxiliary shaft 4-2which extends through the plate 32 in a fashion similar to the mainshaft 38 and carries on the end thereof a second driving head 44 similarto head 40. Shaft 42 is journaled in bushings or pillow blocks 46mounted on plate 34. Shaft 42 is driven by a timing belt 43 from themain shaft 38 which projects beyond the top of the casing of motor 18.Suitable pulleys, are provided on shaft 38 and on shaft 42 to providethe desired speed ratios of the two drawing heads 40 and 44. The speedof the two shafts is normally equal. Shaft 38 also carries on the endthereof outwardly or upwardly from the driving belt 48 a capstan 50which is secured in the usual manner to the shaft 38.

Mounted on the plate 32 in between the drawing heads 40 and 44 is a dieassembly 52which, as may be seen in better detail in FIGURES 5 and 6, isof a generally diverging V-shape having therein a plurality of slotsadapted to receive therein the actual drawing die of the desired size.The dies 54 are of conventional construction having therein usually someform of a diamond drawing orifice mounted in a carrier of steel or othermetal so as to fit within the slots of the frame 52 in a loose fashion.

In normal operation the machine is in the configuration of FIGURES 1 and2 and the wire 56 to be drawn is brought down on the left side of themachine over pulley 58 and into the drawingheads 40 and 44 as will bedescribed in detail herein. After the desired reduction the wire isdrawn up through the plate 32 over pulley 60 mounted on arm 62 wrappedaround capstan 50 twice and then back over pulley 64 mounted on arm 66and thence down to the pulley 68 on the level wind mechanism 30 andthence to the actual take-up reel 22. The wire 56 after it passes overpulley '58 under the plate 32 enters through a die 76 (FIG. 4) mountedon the bottom of plate 32 and then around the lowest step 72 of thedrawing head 40. The wire then proceeds through one of the dies 54amounted in the die rack 52 to the lowest step 74 of drawing head 44 forone turn then back through a die 54b on the other side of the die rack52 around the lowest or first step of the drawing head 40 again, througha die 54c on the other side of rack 52 around the second step of head 44and then to successive steps of heads 40 and 44 until it is wrappedaround and comes off the seventh step of drawing head 40 whence it isbrought up over pulley 75 (FIG. 4) mounted on the bottom of plate 32 andup through a die carrier and die 78 positioned in plate 32 and thence tothe pulley 60, as previously described. With both the drawing heads 40and 44 being powered, illustratively a reduction from a wire enteringsize of No. 14 B & S gauge to a No. 30 B & S gauge is accomplished in asingle pass through the machine 10. This is done as can be seen througha series of sixteen dies all immersed in a cooling fiuid 80 in the tank16 so that the maximum desired drawing is obtained without adverselyaffecting the characteristics of the drawn wire.

it should be understood that for a full reduction from 14 to 30 the Wireas it passes over the heads 40 and 44 slips relative thereto tocompensate for the elongation obtained. The diameter of the pulley stepsis adjusted to partially compensate for and reduce the slippage. For areduction from 14 to 22 namely passing the wire through eight dies only,the machine is non-slip with the pulley steps compensating completelyfor the elongation. For sizes intermediate 22 to 30 there is someslipping but if the omitted dies are taken from the top of the dieholder (FIGURE 4) practically no slip is encountered. With this machineit is possible to have operating speeds of three thousand feet perminute and the overall dimensions of the machine are generally on theorder of thirty inches long by twenty inches wide by about sixty incheshigh.

The tank 16 is filled with cooling fluid 80 to within one-half inch ofthe top. Cooling fluid 80 is normally circulated through tank 16 from aninput pipe 82 to an output pipe 84 in any desired conventional manner.Overflow nipple 31 may be adjusted in output pipe 84 to give the preciseiluid level desired. Removal thereof will permit tank 16 to be drained.The cooling fluid 80 consists normally of water and a lubricant as isstandard in the industry. With the machine in the position shown inFIGURES l and 2 a very close fit is maintained about the plate 32 whichacts as a top for the tank 16 so that no fluid splashes out onto otherparts of the machine or the operator. \Also with this arrangement,little if any dust can escape from the drawing operation to contamiuatethe surrounding atmosphere.

Take-up reel 22 is mounted on a spindle assembly 24 which consists of afixed spindle 86 having a tapered end which engages in a hole in theleft hand plate (see FIG- URE l) of the take-up reel 22 and a movablespindle 88 which is slidably mounted in sleeve 90 on the right hand sideof FIGURE 1 and adapted to engage a hole in the right hand plate of thetake-up reel 22. Sleeve 90 has therein a cam slot 92. A lever 94 isfixed in spindle 88 and upon rotation in the cam slot 92 causes thespindle 88 to move inwardly and outwardly of the sleeve 90 so as toengage and disengage the take-up reel 22-. In this manner, any sizetake-up reel 22 can be readily positioned within the frame 12 andremoved when it has been filled in one quick and easy operation. Asuitable spring or weight 91 is attached to the end of lever 94 tomaintain it in reel engaging position.

Take-up reel 22 is driven by'the auxiliary motor 26 through a frictiondrive arrangement 96 which will be described in detail herein so as toconstantly maintain a takeup tension on the wire as it comes from thecapstan 5%) over the level wind mechanism 30 thereto. The level windmechanism 30 is also driven by the motor 26 through a belt or chain 98from the take-up reel shaft as may be seen in FIGURE 2.

Friction drive arrangement 96 consists of a shaft 99 mounted on frame 12in any convenient manner. Shaft 99 has fixed on it three or more pulleys100 and has a' yoke 102 rotatably mounted thereabout. Yoke 102 carriesat the bottom a shaft 104 which has rotatably fixed thereon acorresponding three or more pulleys 106. Three or more belts 108 arepositioned about pulleys 100 and 106 to form a broad friction surfaceforengagement with the wire on take-up reel 22. Shaft 99 is driven frommotor 26 by belt 110 and pulley 111 fixed thereto and the belts 108 areheld in contact with reel 22 by weight 112. Weight 112 is connected bycable 114 to yoke 102 over pulley 116. In this manner reel 22 is alwaysmaintained in a position to keep a tension on the finished wire as itcomes off the capstan 50.

Obviously instead of multiple pulleys 100 and 106 and belts 108 a singlewide grooved pulley and belt assembly could be used.

In use, the machine is first placed in the position of FIGURE 3 and thewire to be drawn fed through the mechanism as described above until itis completely hooked up about the drawing heads 40 and 44 and the dies54 and thence brought up and about the capstan 50. The entire motor isthen tipped down into the tank 16 to the position shown in FIGURES 1 and2 and the wire brought from the capstan down to the level Wind mechanismand on to take-up reel 22. The machine is then started and it will runcompletely automatically Without further attention until the take-upreel 22 is full. At this point the friction drive arrangement 96 willtrip a suitable stop mechanism not shown which will stop the machine, ifdesired, the operator can stop the machine by simply throwing the mainswitch which controls the power to the main motor and auxiliary motor ofthe machine 10. If a break in the wire should occur, the machine may besimply and easily tilted to the position of FIGURE 3, the wire restrungand then placed in its operating position all without the operatorhaving to place his hands in the hot cooling and lubricating fluid 80 inthe tank 16. Also in this configuration the heads 40 and 44 and dies 54are much more readily accessible for cleaning and replacement.

While there is given above a certain specific example of this inventionand its application in practical use, it should be understood that it isnot intended to be exhaustive or to be limiting of the invention. On thecontrary, this illustration and explanation herein is given in order toacquaint others skilled in the art with this invention and theprinciples thereof and a suitable manner of its application in practicaluse, so that others skilled in the art may be enabled to modify theinvention and to adapt and apply it in numerous forms each as may bebest suited to the requirement of a particular use.

I claim:

1. A wire drawing machine comprising in combination a main frame portionhaving a plurality of legs for supporting said machine on a floorsurface, a cooling and lubricating fluid tank mounted adjacent the topof said frame portion a single electrical motor having a normallyvertically disposed shaft pivotally mounted above said tank adapted tobe pivoted from an operating vertical to a non-operating horizontalposition relative thereto, an auxiliary shaft mounted parallel to saidmotor shaft and spaced therefrom on said motor so as to pivot therewith,belt and pulley means mounted on one end of said shafts for driving saidauxiliary shaft from one end of said motor shaft, wire drawing headmembers mounted on the other ends of the motor shaft and said auxiliaryshaft, a die frame member mounted between said drawing heads, aplurality of dies carried within said die frame member, a capstanmounted on the end of said motor shaft opposite said drawing head,take-up reel means mounted within said frame portion below said tankmeans, auxiliary motor means mounted on said frame for driving saidtake-up reel, friction drive means operatively connecting said auxiliarymotor and said takeup reel, a first guide pulley mounted on said motoradjacent said heads for guiding the wire to be drawn from an externalsupply to said drawing heads, a second guide pulley mounted on saidmotor for guiding said wire from said drawing heads to the other end ofsaid motor, a third guide pulley mounted on said motor for guiding saidwire to the capstan, a fourth guide pulley on said motor for guidingsaid wire from said capstan downwards, and a fifth guide pulley mountedon said frame for guiding said wire to said reel, whereby an extremelycompact, high speed drawing machine is obtained in minimum of cubic andfloor space.

2. A wire drawing machine comprising in combination a main frame portionadapted to support the machine on a floor surface, a coolant andlubricating fluid tank mounted in said frame portion adjacent the topthereof, a take-up reel assembly mounted in said frame below said tankportion, a top cover plate member for said tank, a main drawing motormounted on said plate member and having a shaft extending through saidplate member, an auxiliary shaft member mounted on said motor andextending through said plate member, a pair of pivotally connected armsfixed respectively to said plate member and said tank at each sidethereof whereby said plate, motor and auxiliary shaft are pivotallymounted for movement from a horizontal to a vertical position relativeto said tank and vice versa, seven-step drawing heads mounted on themotor shaft and auxiliary shaft below said plate member, die holdermeans mounted on said plate between said drawing heads, pulley meansmounted on the other end of said motor and auxiliary shafts, belt meansinterconnecting said pulley means for driving said auxiliary shaft insynchronism with said motor shafts, a capstan member mounted on theupper end of said motor shaft, pulley means mounted on one edge of saidplate for guiding the input wire to be drawn by said drawing heads, diemeans mounted in said plate for guiding the exit of the drawn Wiretherefrom to said capstan and take-up reel, auxiliary driving means forrotating said take-up reel, and movable spindle mounting means for saidtake-up reel to readily permit mounting of said take-up reel in saidwire drawing machine.

3. A wire drawing machine comprising in combination a main frame pontionadapted to support the machine on a floor surface, a fluid tank mountedin said frame portion, a coolant and lubricating fluid in said tank, atake-up reel assembly mounted in said frame portion below the fluidtank, a top cover plate member for said tank, a main drawing motorhaving a main shaft and an outer casing mounted on said top cover platemember, an auxiliary shaft member mounted adjacent to said main drawingmotor in a position generally parallel to the shaft of said motor, hingemeans joining said top cover plate to said tank portion for pivotalmovement of said cover and motor relative to said tank, one end of themotor shaft and auxiliary shaft extending through said top cover plateand the other end extending beyond the motor casing, timing belt andpulley means mounted on one end of said shafts for synchronizingrotation thereof, multi-step drawing heads mounted on the other end ofthe motor shaft and auxiliary shaft below said plate member, die holdermeans mounted on said plate between said drawing heads, a plurality ofdie members positioned in the said die holder means, input and outputpipe means adapted to control the level of the cooling and lubricatingfluid in said tank.

4. A wire drawing machine comprising in combination a main frame portionadapted to support the machine on a floor surface, a cooling andlubricating fiuid tank mounted in said frame portion above themid-section thereof, a takeup and level wind reel assembly mounted insaid frame below said tank, auxiliary motor means mounted on said frameand operatively connected to said takeup reel assembly, a main drawingmotor having the shaft thereof extending outwardly of both ends ofhousing thereof, an auxiliary shaft member of approximately equal lengthto the main motor shaft mounted on said motor housing in a mannergenerally parallel to the main motor shaft, mounting means for said maindrawing motor fixed to said frame portion, said mounting means includinghinge members adapted to pivot said main drawing motor from a verticaloperative to a horizontal inoperative position, one end of the motor andauxiliary shafts extending into said tank when in the operativeposition, multi-step drawing heads mounted on the ends of said shaftsadapted to extend into said tank, die and die holder means mountedbetween said drawing heads on said motor for pivotal movement therewith,a capstan member mounted on the other end of said motor shaft, a firstguide pulley mounted on said motor adjacent said heads for guiding thewire to be drawn from an external supply to said drawing heads, a secondguide pulley mounted on said motor for guiding said wire from saiddrawing heads to the other end of said motor, a third guide pulleymounted on said motor for guiding said wire to the capstan, a fourthguide pulley on said motor for guiding said wire from said capstandownwards, and a fifth guide pulley mounted on said frame for guidingsaid wire to said reel, whereby a large number of wire reductions may beaccomplished in a minimum of cubic feet of space.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,599,393 Blount Sept. 7, 1926 1,608,248 Selvig Nov. 23, 1926 1,861,563Deihl June 7, 1932 1,901,920 McMullan Mar. 21, 1933 2,370,806 MacDonaldMar. 6, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS 447,763 Great Britain May 21, 1936 552,526Germany June 15, 1932

